India’s population question
1/6/2023: India is expected to overtake China to become the world’s most populous country sometime in July. However, India's total fertility rate has dropped below the replacement level of 2.1 and population is not the only determinant of environmental problems; it is their consumption pattern that leads to environmental degradation.
Source: Down to Earth
Last chance to save the Amazon
22/5/2023: The Amazon biome has already lost about 20 per cent of its original area, and experts say it is rapidly reaching a "point of no return", pushing it towards becoming a savannah. There are four key elements that could trigger a rapid and systemic transformation for the protection of the Amazon and its peoples.
Source: UN Environment Programme
Amazon Rainforest loss could reach new height in just 5 years
11/5/2023: A recent study has found that in the five-year period between 2021 and 2025, the Amazon could lose half the total forest cover it lost in the previous 20 years. Experts say the Amazon Rainforest is currently experiencing this pessimistic scenario.
Source: Mongabay
EU takes major step for ‘deforestation-free’ trade
19/4/2023: The European Parliament has voted for the Deforestation-Free Products Regulation which requires companies importing commodities to trace their source back to the plot of land where they were produced. Deforestation is second only to fossil fuels as a global source of greenhouse gas emissions.
Source: Human Rights Watch
International Court of Justice to advise states on climate duties
29/3/2023: The UN General Assembly has approved a resolution calling on the International Court of Justice to advise how the legal obligations of states relating to climate change should reflect international law . An advisory opinion from the ICJ is highly influential.
Source: Climate Home News
Global population could peak below 9 billion
27/3/2023: A new analysis suggests the global population could peak at a level significantly lower than is assumed by the UN. In a scenario of unprecedented investment in poverty alleviation, particularly investment in education and health, researchers estimate that population could decline to around 6 billion people by the end of the century.
Source: Earth4All
IPCC highlights rich nations’ failure to help developing world
20/3/2023: The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warns that funding needs to increase ‘many-fold’ in order to protect communities disproportionately affected by global warming. The report says some tropical, coastal, polar and mountain ecosystems have already reached hard adaptation limits.
Source: Climate Home News
If we value human rights, we must fight for climate justice
23/3/2023: The island state of Vanuatu is leading more than 100 countries in tabling a resolution at the UN General Assembly to refer the issue of climate change to the International Court of Justice. The motion seeks to clarify the obligations of states under international law to protect future generations from climate change.
Source: Inter Press Service
Water security lags behind in UN environmental protection
25/3/2023: The UN’s first water conference in nearly 50 years claims to have secured over $300 billion of promises of global action. But there is no legally binding international agreement to protect water resources and no UN special envoy.
Source: Devex
UN warns of’imminent global water crisis
22/3/2023: The UN has released the World Water Development Report 2023, painting a grim picture of rising global water scarcity. It finds that about 10% of the global population lives in countries where water stress is considered "high or critical."
Source: DW